It All Comes Down to This
by Yoroshii Ohtori
Summary: An ex-worker of KaibaCorp rages revenge upon Seto Kaiba… but in order to get to the CEO, he needs bait. And Jounouchi is the best victim in his list. Will Seto finally admit his love for Jou before its too late? (SJ) [Violence, Sexual Harrassment, Tortu
1. Day001: The Truth & Some Revelations

**Title: **It all comes down to this…

**Summary: **An ex-worker of KaibaCorp rages revenge upon Seto Kaiba… but in order to get to the CEO, he needs bait. And Jounouchi Katsuya is the best victim in his list. [SXJ] [Rated for violence, potty words, torture, blood & sexual harassment]

**Genre(s):** Drama/Angst/Romance/Suspense

**Rating:** R – Not suitable for children under 18. But if some teens can handle it… it's not my fault! XD;;

**By:** Klyukaizer

**Disclaimer:** We're here in FF.net, so it's pretty obvious I don't own Yu-Gi-Oh. I own the kidnapper though and some minor characters…

**Dedications: **This fic is dedicated to my online brother "**Blue Lagoon**"… because of his obsession of Seto/Jou, that I had been also obsessed with Seto/Jou too! XD and to "**EeEeEp**"… for being like a real brother to me and for being a good friend… for making me laugh whenever he and Blue makes fun of each other =)

So, without you, bro! This fic (and some other of my Seto/Jou fics) wouldn't have existed in the depths of FF.net! Thanks! ^_~

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**Day 001: The Truth & some Revelations **

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**[06:10 p.m.]**

The ring of the phone suddenly rang throughout Kaiba Manor as Seto, Yugi and others ran to the phone. Seto instantly picked up his cordless phone, answering in a panicked tone, "Hello? Who are you? What've you done to Jou?"

"Why… if it isn't Mr. Seto Kaiba." A man on the other phone smirked.

"Where's Jou? He has nothing to do with this! Let him go!" Seto yelled into the receiver as he growled at the person at the other end. "Don't worry, Mr. Kaiba, it's not like I'm going to hurt him…" The man sneered, "…that much, that is…"

"Let. Jounouchi. _Go._" Seto raised his voice louder, obviously irritated.

"Not until I have my revenge, Mr. Kaiba."

Seto's eyes suddenly widened as realization hit him, "Earl??? Earl, what've you done to him?" Seto yelled, clutching his fists and feeling them burn with anger with him.

"Nothing, Mr. Kaiba…" Earl teased, "Well… not _yet_, that is…"

"Let him go, Earl!!!" Seto yelled. "I'll give you the ransom money! I don't care if it'll cost me the whole Corporation!"

"Kaiba! No!" Seto heard the voice of his puppy at the back.

"Jou?"

"Shut up, _mutt_!" Earl yelled as Seto heard a 'thump' sound, guessing that Jounouchi had fallen to the ground.

"What the heck did you do, you fuckin' idiot?" Seto raged in anger.

Seto heard the psychopathic man laugh at the phone as a soft 'click' of a button was made.

"Guess talking with the speakers on was a bad idea…" Earl laughed insanely. "Stay away from me!"

"If you hurt Jou even with a single hair, I'll-"

"You'll what? Fire me?" Earl threatened, "I think that's a little too late for that, Mr. Kaiba. Considering you had already done that…"

Seto gave a loud snarl, making Yugi and the others jump from behind him.

            "You know what? I think I'll hurt him! Hurt him so bad! Yeah… I think I'll tear him apart! Make him break down and beg for mercy… And if you don't find him soon, he's gonna die!"

Seto's eyes widened as he kept his cool tone in tact, "Y-you _bastard_!"

"You're the same as before, Mr. Kaiba! Always the workaholic, strict CEO who despises everyone! Well, guess what? I don't _need_ money, **Kaiba**! What I want is your head and your pride! So, if you don't want to come out and play with us… say goodbye to your little **mutt**!"

"You. Won't. **Dare**." Seto said.

"Yeah?" Earl snapped.

"Watch me."

And with that, the phone went dead.

"Earl??? Earl!!!" Seto called, "**Damn it**!"

The next thing the gang knew, the cordless phone went flying into the other wall and shattering into pieces. Ryou closed his eyes as the impact was made and the moment he opened them, Seto was now punching the wall in anger.

"**Damn it!** **Damn it! _Damn it!!!_**" Seto yelled.

"That's enough… big brother…" Mokuba softly said as he approached the enraged CEO. Yugi and other others didn't even bother comforting the CEO this time. "It's all my fault…" Seto whispered.

_~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~_

_            "Kaiba!!!" Jou yelled out loud as he chased the CEO out of the school grounds. "Give that back!"_

_            "Come get it if you want it, **mutt**!" Seto laughed teasingly as he held out Jou's Red Eyes Black Dragon card. "Or this card is as good as mine!"_

_Finally, Seto allowed Jounouchi to catch up to him for he noticed that the blonde had been panting tiredly now. "G-give it… back…" Jou pleaded as he saw Seto hold it up high for him to jump at._

_            "Give it back!" Jou yelled as he jumped up and down trying to reach for it._

_Seto laughed at his puppy as he looked at Jou jump tiredly._

_            "Giving up?"_

_            "Please, Kaiba… just. Give it back." Jou pleaded and Seto saw that, making him feel sorry for his crush. Slowly, he gave the card back and Jou lit up in happiness. That look was precious; he wanted to see Joey like that always. "Hn! You're absolutely no fun!" Seto grumbled irritably._

_            "Thanks, Seto…" Jou smiled as he quickly ran away from the CEO. "Psyche!!!" He said as he turned back to look at the brunette._

_            "Hn!" Seto smirked. "And you actually think I would run around chasing a mutt?"_

_            "You just can't accept the fact that you can't catch me!" Joey yelled back._

_            "Nonsense." Seto muttered._

_Seto was about to leave when he felt Joey scream. He looked back to see 5 men in black grabbing Joey and pulling him into a van. "JOU!!!" Seto called as he ran to the blonde, but as soon as he got to where his puppy was, the man before him slammed his fist to Seto's gut._

_"Catch him… if you can." Was what the man said as Seto dropped in knees, doubling over by the pain. And the next thing he knew, the van drove off with his puppy, leaving him behind with the Red Eyes Black Dragon card on the floor._

_~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~_

"I shouldn't have left him…" Seto murmured, "I shouldn't have even dragged him outside…"

"No, _onii-san. _It's that idiot's fault! It's a good thing you fired him anyway! No one is blaming you… but yourself." Mokuba said.

Seto looked at his little brother from below as Mokuba looked up to him. "_Onii-san_…" Mokuba started as he looked at his shoulder to where Yugi was, Yugi nodded at the signal as Mokuba sighed out loud.

            "_Onii-san_, please don't pretend about your feelings for Jou…" Mokuba sighed sadly as Seto raised his head to the gang. "What do you mean?" Seto shot them a despised look.

Yugi stepped up to the Kaiba brothers and looked at Seto flatly. "We know you have feelings for Jou, Kaiba… we noticed it the whole time… e-ever since we came back from Duel Tower." Yugi said in a trembling voice, afraid that maybe he had angered the CEO more.

            "No, I **don't** have feelings for the _mutt_!" Seto denied.

            "You don't? Really…" Tea didn't seem to buy it as she crossed her arms to Seto. "Look, Kaiba! Ever since Jou's been kidnapped… **all** you ever did was find out **how** to get him back, **who** took him, and **blame** yourself!"

            "And what does my feelings have to do with the whole predicament?!" Seto yelled.

            "You – by all people – are affected by it, Kaiba… so just accept the fact that you love him!" Ryou joined.

Seto became silent, but suddenly walked back and forth… thinking of something to get his puppy get back.

            "Would you give it a rest and calm down!" Tea yelled at the CEO, making everyone look at her outburst.

            "And what? Just sit around waiting for another call from him?" Seto argued.

            "Should we ask help from the police?" Tea suggested with a triumphant and sneaky look.

~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~

Loud whipping sounds illuminated throughout the dark room as blood splattered to a nearby wall. Screams and sobs were added and soon, everything stopped.

Jou panted. He had never felt this much pain before… well, except from his father. Hmm… okay, this was _much_ more painful than his father's daily beatings. His head was bleeding and every part of his body had been badly wounded, both from the whips and the blows he had received.

He was suddenly brought up by his chin forcibly by his captor as he glared at him fearlessly.

            "You might want to take that look out of your face, you dirty mutt! Or you're going to get more than what you already got!" Earl smirked.

            "Was that the best you could do?" Jou fought back, receiving a punch by the man before him.

            "Oh… that wasn't the half of it, mutt! That wasn't the half of it!" Earl's grip got tighter.

            "Damn it! Let me go, you- mmrf!" Jou's lips suddenly got caught by Earl's as he squirmed away. Jou shook his head back and forth with all of his strength as he felt himself getting drowsy and drowsy by the moment.

_'I- I mustn't give up… I- I… must… not…'_ No use. The moment he blinked, Earl had broken off from the kiss as he gave a smile at the blonde. "No wonder Seto had adored you this much, mutt." He smirked as he gave a small wave in front of his victim, "Why don't you just surrender to sleep little puppy?"

_'He placed something on me… b-by that kiss…'_

"I'm sure you don't want to find out what's in store for you the moment you wake up…" Earl sneered.

_'No!!! What's he going to do with me?'_

Earl laughed evilly.

_'Seto! Seto… please help!' _And with that, he finally went unconscious.

~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~

Okay… so the first chapter is the worst. Damn it my brother and my cousin are talking **_SO_ **loudly! I can't work well with their irritating voices.

Blue! Eric! This story's for you, guys! ^-^

**Blue** + **Eric** = **_Earl_** (The kidnapper XD;; Bwahahahaha!)


	2. Day002: Beat the Dog with One Stick

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Title: It all comes down to this…

****

Summary: An ex-worker of KaibaCorp rages revenge upon Seto Kaiba… but in order to get to the CEO, he needs bait. And Jounouchi Katsuya is the best victim in his list. [SXJ] [Rated for violence, potty words, torture, blood & sexual harassment]

****

Genre(s): Drama/Angst/Romance/Suspense

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Rating: R – Not suitable for children under 18. But if some teens can handle it… it's not my fault! XD;;

****

By: Klyukaizer

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Day 002: Beat the Dog with One Stick*

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[03:02 a.m.]

The moment the blonde woke up, he was numb by the excruciating pain from all over his body and somehow, dizziness has taken over him. "Wh- where?" He suddenly snapped.

"Speak of the devil..."

__

'That's right! I was kidnapped!'

"So... you're finally awake!" Earl had been in the depths of the shadows, looking over at his prey as Jou snapped up... only to find himself being chained down spread-eagle to a platform.

But what made him totally uncomfortable... was the fact that he didn't have his shirt on. Making all of his wounds and slash cuts vulnerable to the air and any motion. Jou started panicking as he realized he was dealing with a maniac madman here as he struggled to break free.

"Ah, ah, ah!" Earl said as he stepped closer to the blonde. "You don't want to make things difficult now... do you?" He smirked, twirling a Swiss knife at his fingers. He instantly leaned over to Jou's head as he licked the boy by the side of his forehead.

"See that thing over there?" Earl motioned with his nose as Jou looked under him and saw something at the foot of the platform where he was lying down. "I want you to give out your best performance... okay?" Earl whispered, "Your precious little Seto is going to come for you once he sees this... so, it's all going to be a happy ending, right?"

"Cheer up, little puppy... Master's coming for 'ya, hn?" Earl looked at the 'thing' and with that, he grasped the Swiss knife tightly and slammed it to Jou's chest, making the blonde scream in bloody hell.

~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~

****

[07:30 a.m.]

"You feelin' better now?" Mokuba asked as soon as Seto came down from the steps of their long, sophisticated stairs.

Seto nodded with a sad smile as he gave out a loud sigh. "Are the others up yet?" Mokuba nodded as they went to the dining room to join the others to breakfast.

"Kaiba! Mokuba!" Yugi suddenly exclaimed the moment they entered the room.

"What's wrong?" Seto raised an eyebrow.

"This came in this morning!" Yugi said as he held out a package covered in brown paper. Seto quickly took it from the shorter boy and tore open the paper. Inside, was a VHS tape. Seto quickly examined it and found out there was a note on the tape.

// Award-winning Movie from 2000-2004 //

// Directed by: An Unknown Director //

// Starring: Jou"Mutt"nouchi //

"Jou!" Seto gasped.

~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~

As soon as everyone witnessed Seto storming out of the kitchen, they followed the CEO out into the living room where the brunette popped the tape in the player and viewed the tape.

The screen started out with blurry grayscale figures as soon, the image turned out to be Earl sitting on a chair far away from the camera.

"Good Morning, Mr. Kaiba." Earl said as he stood up and approached the camera, looking at it closely. (Also making Seto snarl while viewing the show)

"Everything clear now?" Earl asked, adjusting the camera, "Good."

Slowly, he moved the camera into a platform with someone on top as everyone in the living room gasped. "Jou!" Yugi was the first to say it.

"Yes... it's your little puppy..." Earl said, appearing on the screen once again. "See that? Shh. He's asleep." Earl laughed softly but maniacally, approaching the blonde and bringing the camera up to the blonde's face.

"He looks cute when he sleeps, _ne_? Just like a little lost pup." Earl nuzzled Jou's bloodstained face as Seto grumbled angrily at the actions. "A **broken**... little lost pup."

"Don't worry... he'll wake up soon. The drug will soon wear off." Earl laughed.

"Now... what to do..." Earl said as he placed the camera back on the stand, this time, it was at the foot of the platform where Jou laid. "...Once he wakes up?"

"Wh-where?" A new voice was heard as everyone looked closely at the TV, at the edge of their seats.

"Speak of the devil..." Earl smirked as he walked over to where the blonde was, "So... you're finally awake!"

Everyone saw that Jou started panicking for he was struggling to break free.

"Ah, ah, ah!" Earl said as he stepped closer to the blonde. "You don't want to make things difficult now... do you?" He smirked, twirling a Swiss knife at his fingers. He instantly leaned over to Jou's head as he licked the boy by the side of his forehead.

Seto, once again, snarled at the sight. "Why, I oughta!"

"See that thing over there?" The video continued, Earl motioning his nose to the camera as Jou looked under him. "I want you to give out your best performance... okay?" Earl whispered, "Your precious little Seto is going to come for you once he sees this... so, it's all going to be a happy ending, right?"

Seto could see Jou gasp with eyes full of hope and fear at the same time.

"Cheer up, little puppy... Master's coming for 'ya, hn?" Earl looked at the camera and to everyone's horror, the knife slammed it to Jou's chest, making the blonde scream in bloody hell.

"JOUNOUCHI!" Seto suddenly stood up as Jou screamed as loudly as he could, making everyone look at the video with such horror. "Jou..." Tea trembled, covering her eyes from the sight.

"That's it, scream! Scream like you've never done before..." Earl said, digging the knife deeper into Jou's torso. Jou gave out another high pitch scream as everyone covered their ears.

"Fight it, Jounouchi! Fight it!" Yugi covered his ears and looked away, as tears formed his eyes.

Seto, however, was just there. Staring dumbfounded and wide-eyed at his suffering puppy... and it was all because of him... all because of him...

As soon as Earl stopped, he instantly took off the locks on Jou's wrists and lifted the blonde's upper body for everyone to see. "Jou..." Seto whispered as he looked at Jou's helpless and broken form.

"See that face, Mr. Kaiba?" Earl smirked, lifting Jou's chin high enough for the CEO to see clearly. His face filled with blood and tears. "Tell him, mutt. Tell him how much you love him!"

Jou remained silent, looking at the camera unknowingly and confusingly.

"Don't you know this puppy sleep talks?" Earl laughed, certainly amused. "_'Seto... aishiteru... Seto... aishiteru...'_ Ahahahaha! You should've heard him yourself! Hn! This makes things more interesting! Really interesting..."

"By any chance... may I keep him?" Earl asked as he took Jou by the face and kissed him on the lips, making everyone in the room gasp. "**Damn it! Let him _go_!**" Seto raged in anger as he bolted over to the television and slammed his fist on the glass. Jou struggled to break free as he tried desperately in pushing Earl away.

As soon as the captor broke off from his victim, he licked his lips.

"I said, tell him, mutt!" Earl yelled, grabbing some part of Jou's hair and pulling them hard. Jou winced at the force as tears formed his eyes. "Tell him that!"

Everyone at the room silenced as Seto looked hopefully at Jou.

"Or are you scared that your precious Seto won't love you back?" Earl snapped, yanking Jou's head further.

Once again, everything went silent as Jou looked at the camera before him. "S-Seto_... A-aishiteru... hontou ni aishiteru... _p-please... save me..."

Seto felt like bursting in depression, anger and happiness at the same time as he looked at the madman laughing so hard that it made everyone uneasy.

"2 days, Mr. Kaiba... your puppy is mine in 2 days... and you'll be next!"

And the video ended.

"NO!" Seto yelled. "**Blasted _idiot!_**"

~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~

****

[02:15 p.m.]

"How is he?" Yugi asked as they arrived back from school.

"Not so good..." Mokuba answered, "I just got home from school too. And... The maids have told me he's been up there since this morning."

"Is that so..." Tea whispered sadly.

"Y-Yugi... he's playing the video over and over again!" Mokuba sobbed as he looked at all 4 of them. "What the heck are we going to do? How can we save Jou?"

"We'll have to ask for the police's help, Mokuba..." Ryou reminded him of Tea's previous suggestion.

"Then let's go and tell big brother!" Mokuba said as he walked up to Seto's room.

~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~

For the whole day, Seto had been watching the video over and over again. Hoping that he could locate the place where they were and find where Jou is. But to no avail, the place where Jou had been kidnapped was a very dark place and there are practically a **thousand** places in Domino that is dark! And to add with that, the video itself was making him uncomfortable... for his pup was staring pleadingly for Seto's help.

He has 2 days to bring Jounouchi back. 2 days or less... or Earl might do something to his Jou.

// "S-Seto_... A-aishiteru... hontou ni aishiteru... _p-please... save me..." // Was the part where Seto had rewind and repeated.

// "S-Seto_... A-aishiteru... hontou ni aishiteru... _p-please... save me..." // He didn't know why... but he had to repeat that part.

// "S-Seto_... A-aishiteru... hontou ni aishiteru... _p-please... save me..." // Maybe because he was scared.

// "S-Seto_... A-aishiteru... hontou ni aishiteru... _p-please... save me..." // Or maybe because he wanted to hear his puppy that he loved him.

"Jounouchi..." Seto whispered as he froze the video, looking at Jou's beautiful but pained face closely. "I- I... I love you, Jounouchi..." He whispered, touching the glass at where Jou's face was and leaning against it. "Wait for me... I- I swear, I'll find you."

~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~

Somewhere... in **that** dark cold place, a blonde teen laid peacefully yet painfully on the floor, heard the far away words of the CEO. "I... I love you too... Seto..." He whispered. "Please... come soon..."

"I'll be waiting..."

~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~

**__**

Further Disclaimers:

* **Beat the Dog with One Stick** - I got this chapter title from a technique in "The Legend of Condor Hero" XD;; bwahahahaha!


	3. Day003: Blood & Tears Part 1

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Title: It all comes down to this…

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Summary: An ex-worker of KaibaCorp rages revenge upon Seto Kaiba… but in order to get to the CEO, he needs bait. And Jounouchi Katsuya is the best victim in his list. [SXJ] [Rated for violence, potty words, torture, blood & sexual harassment]

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Genre(s): Drama/Angst/Romance/Suspense

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Rating: R – Not suitable for children under 18. But if some teens can handle it… it's not my fault! XD;;

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By: Klyukaizer

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Day 003: Blood and Tears Part 1

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[08:46 a.m.]

"He's been missing for 3 days now..." The police nodded as he scribbled the information on his notepad. "Are you sure Jounouchi Katsuya didn't run away, Mr. Kaiba?"

"I'm sure, officer!" Seto barked at the last word, "We know who the culprit is and we're **sure** it is him!"

"Yeah... is that so..." It wasn't a question, but more of like a statement.

"Are you questioning me?" Seto raised his voice in such a manner that chills ran down the spine of the officer. "It's not what you're seeing, Mr. Kaiba! I-I was just asking some questions..."

"Hn! It didn't seem like a question!" Seto snapped.

"Now... who is this "**he**", Mr. Kaiba? Can you identify him? Name... appearance... or any relation whatsoever?"

"Earl Law. He's half-American, half-Japanese. Has raven-black hair and always has this annoying cocky grin on his face. He used to work for me, but somehow, I had to fire him because I found out he has been giving out all of the Corporation's secrets to my enemies." Seto answered, he didn't even know _why_ he had to tell the officer about what happened before!

The police officer eyed Seto suspiciously before closing his small notepad and tucking the pen on his polo pocket. "Thanks for answering these questions, Mr. Kaiba! We will call you if something comes up! We'll be back!" The officer said, "_Real soon..."_ He muttered, but the CEO didn't hear those for he already slammed the main door behind him.

"Jerk." Seto cursed.

~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~

****

[Meanwhile...]

Everything was bright. Too bright - to be exact. Jounouchi Katsuya twisted and turned on his side and noticed that something unexplainable was going on inside his body and somehow, he wanted to throw everything up! Literally. This is yet his first time ever experiencing pain that much... that he just wanted to drop down and die in a snap of a finger.

"Get up!"

Oh, his sweet, sweet and peaceful sleep was being interrupted by sounds that were of nuisance to him.

"I said GET UP, you **fuckin' _bitch_**!!!"

And the next things he knew something hit him painfully in the stomach, making him double over and crouch further in pain. A scream escaped his mouth as tears and blood splattered unto the cold floor.

"Please... n-no more... please stop it..." Jou pleaded softly.

"And lose the game? No way, **_Jou_**! Can I call you that? Yeah!" Earl talked to himself as he bent down to where Jou's face was. Looking at the blonde made him feel uneasy... despite from all the blood coming out of the teen's head, torso and mouth.

He didn't have to this to the kid, does he? All he ever wanted was Kaiba Seto... Heck! Why was he thinking that way? He shouldn't give in to weakness!

Picking up the blonde's chin, Earl listened intently to the silent sobs and heavy breathing of the injured boy, "You know... you're very pretty, you know that?" Earl said sincerely, making Jou open one eye and shudder at the sudden tone of his voice.

"You don't have to be afraid of me." The captor softly said as he leaned in closer to give the blonde a kiss... Joey instantly closed his eyes tightly to avoid the sight and prepared for the worst... but it didn't came! He soon noticed that the captor didn't kiss him at all.

"So vulnerable..." Earl said with sad eyes, "Yet so brave..."

Jou received a slap on the face by the other person of the room and the moment he opened his eyes again, the kidnapper had left Jou in the dungeon alone. At first, Jou had thought that this was a little strange for a kidnapper to be acting.

But still...

Earl is still human.

A human also has feelings... even though those feelings are of sadness or of pain.

Jou perfectly understood Earl. Maybe he did these because of some reason... a reason that neither Jou **nor** Seto had the right know.

~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~

****

[12:29 p.m.]

Putting his feet on top of the desk and his hands at the back of his head, Earl pondered... He had left the boy all alone ever since they had the little "shooting"... and he didn't know what had gotten into him. Was he actually feeling sorry? Was he experiencing guilt for the boy?

"What the _heck_ are you trying to prove, Law?" The moment Earl Law raised his head, a fist slammed into his face and he toppled over to the floor, landing on his face. He looked up to see who the person was, only to find that a feet was pushing his head firmly to the cold ground.

"It's all over the news, Earl! You're a wanted criminal! The police are going to have _you **and** your neck_ if you don't stop this **soon**!"

Earl pushed the man's feet away from his face as he pushed himself up from the floor as well. "I don't care what happens to me as long as I can get revenge... and you're definitely **not** stopping me, Shuu!" Earl snarled, facing the redhead in front of him.

Shuu Kazuma had long, red hair and dark blue eyes. He always wears a long-sleeved white shirt covered with a blood-red vest, matching it with his hair.

"Don't be so cocky, Earl! You can't just kill the CEO then kill yourself, Earl!" Shuu snapped at the slightly shorter friend of his as he placed his hands inside his khaki pants. "I won't allow that!"

"And you have the rights to **_stop_** me? Yet alone **_defeat_** me?" Earl said cockily as he crossed his arms in a mocking manner.

"_Yare-yare_!" Shuu sighed as he walked over to the fallen chair and picked it up, sitting on it heavily with yet another sigh. "I never knew you were so serious about this, Earl. If I knew you would come this far as to kidnapping... I should've stopped you a long time ago! Or better yet - **kill** you!" Shuu glared at the ebony-haired man.

"Yeah... as if you _can_!" Earl smirked.

Shuu looked at his friend for a while with sad eyes, while Earl shot him a different stare. Shuu was about to start when Earl noticed this and instantly cut off the redhead, "I DON'T NEED YOUR CONCERN, SHUU! WHY CAN'T YOU JUST FORGET ABOUT ALL OF THOSE HAPPENING TO ME?" Earl burst.

"I can... and I **did**, Earl..." Shuu sighed softly, "...it is you who did not."

Earl shout out an expression filled with shock and fear, before he could lower his head in admittance and sadness. "I loved her, Shuu... more than anything..." He whispered, hiding his eyes at the shadows of his bangs.

__

~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~

"Emma! I'm home!" Earl called as he entered the American-style house, "Man! I really can't believe you graduated in that university of yours in Italy! And here, I used to think that my little sister just learned how to walk!"

A shorter raven-haired girl turned around and stuck out her tongue to her brother. "Are you saying I don't act like my age?" Emma shot Earl a despised look.

"Probably..." Earl laughed.

"How's work today?" Emma changed the subject, hoping that her stubborn brother wouldn't tease her more than he already had. "Hectic - **really** hectic!" Earl sighed, plopping down on the sofa, "Are Mom and Dad home yet?"

Emma shook her head as she placed a plate of strawberries in front of her brother, "Eat these. I picked some good ones in the supermarket before anyone could." She grinned widely as Earl grinned back.

"Arigatou..."

"That's **grazie** in Italian." Emma informed boastfully as Earl rolled his eyes, "Yeah... whatever!" He snorted.

~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~

"Are these all?" A man with thick beard, round belly and extremely **huge** hands took the suitcase Earl handed him. "Yes, Mr. Wickstone, I took them all from Seto Kaiba's main hard drive. No one suspected a thing for they thought I was only sending his e-mails." Earl said slowly and fearfully.

"Excellent. Kaiba Corporation will soon under my feet!" Wickstone laughed with his pudgy double chins, eyeing the documents inside the suitcase that the ebony brought. "For this... you shall be rewarded. A million yen? Or dollars? Anything you wish... And yes, your wish will be of command that we had never made contact at all and everything are of no clue to you **or** your family!"

"Thank you, sir..." Earl gave a surprised expression with a huge smile on his face, while giving off his respectful bow. Indeed, Wickstone was a man of his words.

"But remember this, Law..." Wickstone added, "You shall **never** remember me **or** how you got your reward as well, understood?"

"Yes... I understand."

~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~

"WHO?" Seto Kaiba yelled, hitting Earl on the gut. "Who did you sold it off to?"

Earl doubled over, holding his stomach, "I... don't... know what... you're talking... about... Kaiba-sama..." Earl choked out, trying to swallow back all the blood that are rushing out of his system. "Did you know how much **trouble **you had caused me, Earl Law?" Seto snarled.

"P-please, sir... I didn't-"

"Didn't **what**? Didn't know that it was so important?! Or you didn't know that I also have a security camera built on my laptop?" Seto Kaiba, the ever-so-calm person, was now raging angrily at the top of his voice.

"You. Are. **Fired**!" Seto said as he stormed away from the raven-haired boy on the floor.

~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~

It was raining. By the time Earl got out of Kaiba Corporation and dragged his tired body out heading to his home. It was already raining. And yes, he was devastated about it. He had always dreamt of working in a big company... and maybe, his family could be proud of him for once.

Like they were with Emma...

How is he going to explain to this to Emma and his parents when he gets home?

"I'm home!" He said as he unlocked the main door with his key, when his eyes went wide and his jaws dropped on him.

Blood.

Everywhere.

There was blood everywhere.

And on the ground were both of his parents. "Tou-san! Kaa-chan!" He yelled out in despair as he knelt down before them. He sobbed loudly as he held their motionless bodies but soon realized one more person.

"Emma!" He ran all over the house. Heading over to the backyard, he opened the backdoor with such force that lightning suddenly bolted. There - at the green grass - was crimson blood. The crimson blood of Emma Law.

"EMMA!!!" Earl yelled as he ran to the girl's aid and shaking her uncontrollably. "Please wake up, little sister! Onegai! Onegai, don't leave me!"

"N-niisan?"

"Emma!" Earl gasped in a happy tone. "Please hold on! I'll bring you to a hospital right away!"

Earl instantly bolted out the fence and ran as fast as he could, slipping a few times, but continued running anyway. Everything seemed to blur in his vision, for he too, was still weak from the beating he got from his former boss.

"Who did this to you, Emma? Who did this to you, Mom and Dad?" Earl murmured while running.

"W-W-Wicks-s-stone..." Emma said.

"What?!" Earl stopped for a moment but continued running.

"B-betrayal... s-said... y-you... b-b-bet-trayed h-him i-in K-Kaiba C-corp-"

"-Please don't talk anymore, sister!" Earl pleaded.

As soon as he neared the hospital, Earl's heart beat even faster but his smile broadened widely. "We're almost here, Emma! We're almost h- E-Emma?"

"A-arriv-vederci... big brother..." Were the last words the young girl said before her hand finally dropped to her side. "E-Emma? Emma? Emma!!"

Earl stood there in the rain with fear and sadness as he gripped his sister in tight arms. "No... you can't die! Y-you just came home from Italy yesterday! W-We haven't s-seen each other f-for 6 years..." He sobbed, holding her dead sister in his arms.

"Y-you can't leave me like this..." He was alone now. He had no one. "Tou-san... Kaa-san..."

"EMMA!!!!!!"

It was a night of blood and tears.

To be continued.


	4. Day003 & 004: Blood & Tears Part 2

****

Title: It all comes down to this…

****

Summary: An ex-worker of KaibaCorp rages revenge upon Seto Kaiba… but in order to get to the CEO, he needs bait. And Jounouchi Katsuya is the best victim in his list. [SXJ] [Rated for violence, potty words, torture, blood & sexual harassment]

****

Genre(s): Drama/Angst/Romance/Suspense

****

Rating: R – Not suitable for children under 18. But if some teens can handle it… it's not my fault! XD;;

****

By: Klyukaizer

~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~

****

Day 003: Blood and Tears Part 2

~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~

****

[2:10 p.m.]

"You can't tell me to forget all about it, Shuu..." Earl whispered softly while looking out the window, "I will **never** forgive... **nor** forget about it!"

Shuu eyed his raven-haired friend as he sighed once again. "And? What do you plan to do next?"

Earl faced his friend once again and glared at him, "The same thing that had happened to the _fat bastard_!"

__

~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~

Loud, hoarse screams illuminated the whole building as a loud thump made way to the floor. Soon, the red carpets around Wickstone Corporation had been dyed with a deeper red as blood streamed its way freely.

Other thump can be heard, only this thump was softer.

It was a black gun - which was still steaming.

And what followed the gun was a pair of white gloves carelessly thrown to the floor... and soon, heels of shoes were leaving the room.

~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~

"Can you _actually_ do that to the CEO of Kaiba Corporation?" Shuu said disbelievingly.

"Once again you are questioning my capabilities, Shuu. And I **don't** like that!" Earl snarled.

"But why did you have to drag Seto Kaiba along? Wickstone was the one who killed your family, not him! Why make him suffer as well?"

"He has ruined both my life and my pride! If he couldn't have known I was a spy for Wickstone, would Wickstone kill my family? No... I don't think he would. Seto Kaiba - an arrogant, selfish bastard who only thinks of his own advantages and of himself!" Earl said, "I would rather keep my hostage for myself! The blonde doesn't deserve that arrogant bastard!"

"Hn! And you're saying you like the boy?" Shuu raised an eyebrow.

"Katsuya Jounouchi..." It was more of like a statement, than a question. "Hmm... Yes, I think I do." He smirked, "But **lust**... is of primary right now."

"I can't stand you anymore!" Shuu said irritably as he stood up to leave, when Earl cut him off again, "Why? Are you jealous?"

Shuu shot a raised eyebrow but didn't turn back at his friend, "As much as I hate to admit... yes, I **am** jealous." And with that he stormed away from the smirking kidnapper.

~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~

****

[3:58 p.m.]

Jou had been tied tightly by bandage strips. That's right... bandage strips, wrapped together on his wrists and up 2 inches more. Not only that, but a cloth had been tied to his eyes, preventing him to cry on his own free will... as well as seeing what's going on.

"Don't be scared...I won't hurt you..." Earl said seductively as he turned Jou over and made the blonde lie on his back. "P-please...d-don't do this... _Onegai_..." Jou sobbed making the cloth damp, sucking in all of his tears.

"Let me ask you this, Jou..." Earl started, "Have you ever cried so much in your life that you just wanted everything to disappear and you just wanted to die afterwards?"

Jou kept silent and continued sobbing.

"Let's talk, shall we?" Earl whispered, making Jou uncomfortable. "I'm a man of my words and I promise I won't hurt you tonight!" Earl said, pulling Jou by the collar and making the teen sit up. "Talk. I'm listening!" Earl said impatiently.

"Have you?" Earl asked again as he saw Jou nod. "Oh! You have? Then maybe we have some things in common..." Earl smirked, "Tell me about it."

"I-it's..." Jou hesitated, but decided to trust the captor. "...My dad." Earl's once cold face, turned into a serious one. "Go on..."

"E-every... night... h-he beats me up... a-and sometimes... h-he rapes me..." Jou felt his voice quivering as he trembled all the same time. "My mom and my sister left us..."

At the sound of "sister", Earl's head perked up and continued looking at the blonde's direction. "Is she your younger sister? Or an elder sister?"

"Younger. By a few years." Jou answered truthfully, "Sh-she just got her sight back recently... wh-when Seto paid for her operation..." But at the sound of "Seto", Earl's eyes glared at the boy and ignored him.

"Why did they leave you behind?" Earl continued, asking without emotion.

"My dad said it was because of me..." Jou said sadly, "...I wasn't exactly called the "Perfect Son"..." Jou whispered, lowering his gaze to his palms. "...I'm a street punk and I always get failing grades when it comes to academics..."

"Kind of reminds me when I was in your age!" Earl suddenly burst out laughing, making Jou nervous all of a sudden. "I had a sister too!"

"You do?" Jou smiled, his eyes lit up from behind the cloth.

"She died, though."

"I-I'm sorry..." Jou whispered.

"All because of Seto Kaiba!"

"What?!"

~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~

****

[05:43 p.m.]

"Have you found out about him yet?" Seto asked as soon as the police officers entered the Kaiba Manor. "It seems that Earl Law isn't exactly a Japanese citizen... we aren't able to track down where he lives for he has kept his life a mystery!" An officer explained.

"Damn!" Seto cursed, "Isn't there any way to find out about him?"

"There is... Mister Kaiba."

"What?"

"Through the phone..."

~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~

"I-I can't believe it..." Jou trembled as Earl finished his story. "Not a part of the story was a lie... I didn't add anything more and didn't take anything more..." Earl said softly, making the blonde beside him heaved out a painful sigh.

"S-Seto..."

Jou felt Earl move as he moved back as well, only to notice that Earl had taken off the cloth from his eyes. The moment everything became clear again, Jou looked up at Earl's sad and lonely eyes.

"What do you see in him so much, Jounouchi?" Earl asked as Jou backed away, "Please... stop..."

But Earl didn't stop, he wrapped the cloth back at Jou's eyes again and the moment he did, he pressed his lips instantly on Jou's, making the blonde teen whimper out in protest.

"_Y-Yamero-_" Jou said from the muffled kiss.

"Please be mine." Earl whispered as Jou's eyes widened from behind the cloth.

"NO!" Jou yelled, "**Seto!!!** **Seto!!! _Seto!!!_**"

~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~

****

Day 004

[06:08 a.m.]

"Everything is set, Mr. Kaiba." The police said as lines and wires were attached into computers from a single phone. "As soon as the kidnapper calls, we'll track him then..."

Seto nodded as he looked at everyone in the room. Yugi and the others were sitting in the living room with all of the other investigators looking intently on the phone.

"C'mon, Earl..."

~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~

"That was excellent. Excellent, indeed." Earl commented as he saw Jou's tears coming out from the damp cloth on his eyes. The green cloth that had once been dry, had now been soaked by Jou's salty tears. Making the green color turn into a dark green of texture.

Earl looked at the sun's light that had shone brightly into the cell as he blinked back a few times. Looking at his watch it read: 06:36 a.m.

"We've been at it for 12 hours... I'm surprised you didn't grow bored." Earl laughed maniacally, wearing his shirt and pants that had been carelessly tossed to the other side of the jail cell.

Kneeling down on the blonde's body, he carefully zipped Jou's pants back up and kissed the blonde quickly at the lips, Earl pulled back and stood up on his feet. "I have to take a shower and make an important phone call... will you wait for me?"

Without waiting for the blonde's answer, he left the jail cell and locked it. "Thank you..." And with that, he left.

~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~

****

[08:24 a.m.]

"It's been 2 hours already! When is he going to make that call?" Tristan grumbled irritably as he plopped on the sofa. And as if he had the sense of psychokenesis, the phone suddenly rang, making everyone jump.

Seto instantly bolted to the phone and lifted it up to his ear.

"Kaiba here."

"I see someone's been expecting a call from me..." Earl said from the other line, the usual cocky voice still present at his tone.

"Earl!" Seto snarled, looking over at the working investigators. Signaling them to start working.

"Docks. Tomorrow night. Come alone. **Don't** bring any of your police officers!" And with that, the phone went dead.

Seto grumbled irritably as he looked at the officers. "We weren't able to trace him. He was too far away and the conversation was too short."

"**Damn**!" Seto cursed.

**__**

To be continued...


	5. Day005: The Truth & Some Lies

****

Title: It all comes down to this…

****

Summary: An ex-worker of KaibaCorp rages revenge upon Seto Kaiba… but in order to get to the CEO, he needs bait. And Jounouchi Katsuya is the best victim in his list. [SXJ] [Rated for violence, potty words, torture, blood & sexual harassment]

****

Genre(s): Drama/Angst/Romance/Suspense

****

Rating: R – Not suitable for children under 18. But if some teens can handle it… it's not my fault! XD;;

****

By: Klyukaizer

~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~

****

Day 005: The Truth and Some Lies

~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~

****

[07:02 p.m.]

"You're really going to go there alone?" Mokuba exclaimed with a shocked expression on his face, "No, Big Brother! You can't!" Mokuba cried, pulling Seto by the end of his trench coat like some desperate kid -- Well, Mokuba **was** desperate.

"You just can't!" Mokuba insisted, "Earl is going to kill you! Wh-what if he goes back down on the deal and kills both you and Jou? At least... bring one police officer! I don't trust him and I know you **don't** too!"

"I'm going to save Jou... alone. If he finds out I brought an officer. The chances of him killing us are greater. I have to take a gamble in this one, Mokuba." Seto answered coldly.

"And you're saying you're going to gamble Jou's life too?" Mokuba raised his voice, "You love him, _oniisan_! I thought you wouldn't risk his life!"

"Mokuba..." Seto started, "...I have to admit. I love Jou. Yes, I **do** love him. And frankly speaking, I had already risked Jou's life in the beginning. You have to trust me, Mokuba. I can get away from this! By tomorrow when you wake up, I'll be here with Jou in my arms." Seto smiled.

"I promise..."

Mokuba looked like he was about to burst out crying soon as he looked at his brother, "I- I trust you, big brother!" Mokuba smiled, watching Seto kneel down in front of him. "Come here." Seto opened his arms as Mokuba gave him a warm embrace.

"Please come back soon, _oniisan_." Mokuba sobbed, burying his face on Seto's shoulder.

~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~

****

[08:09 p.m.]

"So... you really **are** going alone, are you?"

Seto stopped when he saw Yami leaning his back on the front door with his usual "arms-on-the-chest-and-eyes-closed" position that Seto **really** hated!

Seto glared at the previous Pharaoh and walked passed by him. "Yes. Now get out of my way." Seto snapped as he tried turning the doorknob but was instantly stopped by Yami.

"What're you thinking, Kaiba?" Yami asked, "Have you ever thought about the consequences about what might happen to your brother when you **really** die?"

Seto stopped as realization struck him. Yami's right. He had never thought about it.

"Mokuba's going to be sent to the orphanage. Your company's going to be taken over by the Big 5. Things are going to change a lot of you make a mistake, Kaiba." Yami snapped, "What about Jou's family? He has a mother and a sister, who are worried somewhere out there in America. And a drunken father who is slouching himself at home. How are you going to explain it to them?"

Seto didn't answer those questions as he looked at his hand on the doorknob.

"Have you ever anticipated the worst?" Yami frowned. "Don't risk the chan-"

"I'll save him." Seto interrupted as Yami looked at him flatly. "I'll save Jou even if it's the last thing I'd do! Even if I have to **kill** Earl!"

"You wouldn't. I know you won't do it." Yami concluded.

"Yeah?" Seto smirked, "Maybe I will."

Yami smirked back.

"I'll be back." Seto said as he opened the door.

"Good luck." Yami grinned. And for the first time in life, Seto had acknowledge his arch enemy.

With a nod and a smile.

~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~

****

[08:21 p.m.]

"I never knew time flew so fast. Guess you'll never know the time when you're having so much fun!" Earl laughed as he looked at the broken boy below him. Jou stared up blankly at nothing as tears formed his eyes and strolled down to where his ears were.

"Hey. Don't cry! You're going to meet your boyfriend soon! He'll come! I'm sure he will!" Earl smirked as he pulled Jou to a siting position by the 2-inch binds on the blonde's wrists. "You know, Jou. If he really loved you... he wouldn't have waited for 2 days to come and get you."

"Frankly speaking, I don't think he **does** love you, though... I mean, 2 days??? Leaving your loved one with some psychopath -- like me -- for 2 days? Heck! I'm sure you've gotten raped a **lot** of times!" Earl laughed at his own joke. He lifted Jou by the chin and licked the blonde at the neck, "You know what I mean, don't you?"

Jou looked as if he was lost in thoughts as new batch of tears flooded from his eyes. "S-Seto..."

"Heh. Let's go, shall we?" Earl said, pulling Jou roughly into a kiss and broke off instantly.

The captor brought a red cloth and blindfolded the blonde by the eyes, carrying the small frail body over his shoulders. "You don't want to see what's going to happen." Earl smirked as he walked out of the jail cell with the blonde on top of his shoulders.

~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~

****

[08:57 p.m.]

It was windy that night. The forecast had said a storm was going to break out soon. Seto hoped that it wouldn't rain by the time he gets home. **If** he gets home, that is.

"You're pretty early tonight, Mr. Kaiba." Earl smirked as he laid the motionless blonde on the ground beside him. Seto stared at his puppy in shock as he noticed that Jou had lost 30% of his normal body weight. He's guessing Earl might have not taken well care of him that much.

"What did you do to him?" Seto snarled.

Earl placed his index finger lightly over his lips as he smiled. "That's for me to know and for you to find out..." He winked as Seto's eyes bulged in anger. "Y-you didn't." Seto stuttered.

"You mean, this?" Earl pulled Jou's collar down and revealed numerous hickeys on the blonde's neck. "Oh. That's how many times I did **it**. You like it? It actually brings out the color of Jounouchi's skin."

"**_Bastard_**!!!" Seto lunged out to Earl but Earl was too quick for him. The next thing the CEO knew, a knee made contact to his gut as blood splattered out from his mouth.

Seto doubled over as he held his stomach with such pain. "Jou..." Seto whispered, crawling to the blonde boy. His hand was stopped abruptly when a shoe stepped on his palm and crushed it painfully. Seto screamed loudly as he tried to pull it away.

"It's not that easy, Mr. CEO if KaibaCorp." Earl snapped. "I will make you suffer! Suffer what I had before! I'm going to make your life miserable! Like what you did to me before!"

"Don't-- drag Jou into this mess!" Seto mumbled as he felt another rush of blood bubbling out of his mouth.

"SHUT UP!" Earl yelled as he kicked Seto over and over again, making the brunette scream and yelp at each blow.

"You don't know how it is to lose your family, don't you? To see your parents sprawled on the floor with blood everywhere! With eyes filled with nothing but terror! To see your sister die in front of your arms! You don't know, don't you?" Earl yelled angrily, tears sprouting out from his eyes.

"Well... guess what? I'm going to show you, Seto Kaiba!" Earl stopped as he walked over to where the blonde teen was; he took a gun from inside his pocket and pointed it towards Jounouchi.

"He was such a kind kid. Just like Emma. If Emma were alive right now, they would've been good friends!" Earl whispered sadly, looking over at the CEO who was struggling to stand up. "It's all you and Wickstone's fault!" Earl yelled.

~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~

"W-Wi-Wickstone?" Seto gasped as he looked at his former worker in front of him. "You were spying for Wickstone?!" Earl glared at the bloody CEO on the floor with emotionless eyes.

"Why the **heck** were you working for him, **_Law_**???" Seto yelled, standing up fully this time. At this point, Earl was starting to tremble at Seto's sudden outburst. "Of all the people! Wickstone! He's a man who never keeps his words, Earl!" Seto snapped as Earl backed away a little.

"Wh-what?"

"How could you be so stupid as to work for that fat **bastard**???" Seto yelled even louder.

"SHUT UP!!!" Earl yelled as a loud gunshot can be heard.

~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~

"B-Big brother..." Mokuba moaned in his sleep as beads of sweat ran down from his face. "How is he?" Yugi asked silently as Ryou placed a wet piece of cloth on Mokuba's forehead.

"48." Ryou replied softly, looking at the thermometer. "It's getting worst, Yugi..." He said nervously, tucking the young Kaiba in a puddle of blankets. "We have to get him into a hospital."

"N-no..."

"Mokuba?" Ryou gasped as he looked at the waking ebonite.

"B-Big brother... pr-promised... h-he said... h-he'll... come... back..." Mokuba hyperventilated, "I- I can't... leave... the h-house... I- I have... t-to... wait... f-for him..."

"Shh...it's okay, Mokuba." Ryou comforted, "We'll stay with you, is that okay?" Ryou asked.

Mokuba nodded softly with a pained smile. "Thank you, Ryou... Yugi..." And with that, he slept soundly.

"I'm worried about him, Yugi..." Ryou said softly as he dampen the wet cloth on a basin and placed it once again on Mokuba's forehead.

"He's going to be fine, Ryou... All he needs is rest." Yugi smiled reassuringly as he patted the albino by the shoulder. "I mean..." Ryou started, "Wh-what if Kaiba won't come back? What's going to happen to Mokuba?"

"Kaiba **will** come back, Ryou... I'm sure of it." Yugi said.

~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~

Seto dropped on his knees as he held his bleeding right shoulder in such pain.

"_You will **never** understand, you **bastard**! You will **never** understand how I felt that night and what it brought me until now!_" Earl screamed with the gun pointed to the kneeling CEO in front of him with such anger and sadness.

"Wickstone was already planning to kill your family in the beginning, Law!" Seto explained, "Have you ever wondered why you never got the money he promised you? He tricked you, Earl! He tricked you!"

"Shut **up**!" Earl snarled, "**You** were the reason why he killed them! **You** found out I was spying for him because of a **stupid** camera attached to your laptop! **You** had to be all-perfect Seto Kaiba! The arrogant bastard who looks down on people!" Earl can't help but trembled as tears flooded down from his eyes.

"It's too late now! It's _too_ late!" Earl said, shutting his eyes heavily, blinking away all the tears. "Well... say goodbye, Seto Kaiba!" he snapped, tightening his grip on the gun on his hand.

"Say goodbye..."

**__**

To be continued...

BANG!!!

Klyukaizer: Just kidding! ^_~"

****

Earl: Kidding? Really? I see blood on Kaiba's coat, you know.

****

Klyukaizer: Shh! Don't spoil everything! *looks at the readers looking at her* Umm... it's nothing! Nothing! ^_^" ehehehehe...

****

Mokuba: *wakes up* Is brother back yet?

****

Klyukaizer: No...go back to sleep, Mokie (I like that ^_~")

****

Mokuba: Okay... *plops back to bed*

****

Earl: I have another victim! *stares at Mokuba evilly*

****

Klyukaizer: *fly kicks Earl* Don't you _dare _touch him!!! è.é"

****

Earl: Gotta go now, bye!!! *runs away from the screaming Klyukaizer*


	6. Day005 & 006: The End of the Beginning

****

Title: It all comes down to this…

****

Summary: An ex-worker of KaibaCorp rages revenge upon Seto Kaiba… but in order to get to the CEO, he needs bait. And Jounouchi Katsuya is the best victim in his list. [SXJ] [Rated for violence, potty words, torture, blood & sexual harassment]

****

Genre(s): Drama/Angst/Romance/Suspense

****

Rating: R – Not suitable for children under 18. But if some teens can handle it… it's not my fault! XD;;

****

By: Klyukaizer

~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~

Earl's name is read as (ur-u-lo) when you apply Japanese accent, especially when Jou adds a "_-san_" suffix on Earl's name. You already how to pronounce it in American accent ü

~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~

****

Day 005: The End of the Beginning

~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~

"It's too late now! It's _too_ late!" Earl said, shutting his eyes heavily, blinking away all the tears. "Well... say goodbye, Seto Kaiba!" he snapped, tightening his grip on the gun on his hand.

"Say goodbye..."

"**_Yamero_**!!!" Earl suddenly stopped when Jou screamed and instantly lunged himself on Seto's chest, defending the CEO even though his eyes were blindfolded and when he could barely move his arms by the binds on his wrists. "_Onegai,_ Earl-_san_! _Onegai... yamero_..." Jou pleaded, sobbing with tears coming out from below the blindfolds.

Everything around suddenly went silent, except from the blowing wind and from Jou's dry sobs.

It seemed that time had stopped where Earl was pointing the gun on the kneeling Jou in front of him. Jou was looking up blindly at the captor before him with the binds and blindfold in place. And with Seto Kaiba sprawled on the floor, blood coming out from his shoulder and mouth.

"Y-you can start again..." Jou began. "I-I'll help you... n-no one understands you... more than I do..." Earl looked sadly at the sobbing blonde in front of him as he lowered his gun.

"R-remember... th-the little chat we had?" Jou smiled, apart from the condition he was in at the moment. "I-I never knew... y-you were a street punk too!" Jou laughed forcibly as thunder began to fill their ears.

"_Onegai..._" Jou pleaded.

"You don't deserve..." Earl began as Jou stopped.

"You don't deserve..." Earl repeated, "...to experience pain, Jou."

Jou looked up to where Earl's voice was. By now, the rain had started to pour down and the 3 men where soaked down to their toes. "You don't deserve it..."

"Why don't you hate me?" Earl asked, trembling from the rain's coldness and from his own fears. "I-I've done so many... unforgivable things to you... wh-why?"

"I... I don't know..." Jou whispered. "B-but maybe... b-because... w-we're the same..." Seto looked away with sadness as he tried to sit up.

"I... I've done... unforgivable things too..." Jou admitted, "Beating other kids just to get what I wanted. S-sometimes I feel... like I don't have... a use in this world... I-I'm not good-looking... nor smart... nor talented. I-I'm just plain Jou."

"M-maybe... I get beaten up all the time... b-because I did it to other kids before... m-maybe this is punishment..." Jou mumbled, "...but still, I started all over! I started my life at a different perspective! I met Yugi, Seto and the others and I was able to change! They liked me for being the plain Jou! Not the punk Jou!"

"Y-You can start all over again, Earl-_san_! I know you can!" Jou insisted as Seto sat up from behind the blonde. "Earl... if it means so much to you... I will do whatever I can to help you..." Seto said slowly, grasping at his right shoulder. "Work for me again..." Seto said. It wasn't an order. But a simple request.

Earl looked at both teenagers beneath him as he gave a sad smile and looked up at the rain, allowing the drops to fall freely on his face. "It's too late now... it's too late..." he whispered.

"Earl-_san_?" Jou called.

Earl smiled at the blonde, "I'm sorry, Jou... for everything." A single tear trickled down from his cheek, with that, he put up the gun up to his head and...

"NO!!!" Seto yelled.

BANG!

A loud splash and thump was heard on the wet grounds by the blindfolded teen as he felt himself trembling. Trembling because he couldn't see anything and because realization hit him.

Heavy rain was heard in his senses and a sound of a cruising boat. And after that, he gave out a high-pitched scream.

~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~

"Jou! Calm down!" Seto said as he tried to keep the blindfolded boy by falling over the docks.

"NOOOO!!!" Jou screamed bloody hell as he struggled and struggled.

"Jou! Stop it!"

"**He never did _anything_ wrong**!!! **He never did _anything wrong_**!!!" Jou screamed as his tears came running down from the completely damp cloth on his eyes.

Seto finally had the blonde teen on his arms as he hugged Jou tightly, "Jou..." Seto whispered as he allowed Jou to cry like a weeping baby. Jou felt his throat getting dry by the screaming as he banged Seto's chest with his still-binded wrists, but still... it didn't matter. He just wanted everything to get out of his heavy heart.

Seto can't help but cry with his puppy as he looked at Earl's motionless body. The raven-haired man bore a smile on his face, as the gun lay forgotten on his hand. "I'm sorry, Earl..." he whispered.

Emotions were rising.

And hearts were certainly shattered.

And the heavy rain continued to pour down, just like how Jounouchi Katsuya's tears poured down.

~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~

****

[11:25 p.m.]

"What happened?" Tea gasped as she saw the bleeding Seto and the sleeping Jou in his arms (blindfold and bind obviously taken off) entering from the main door.

"Oh god!" Yugi gasped as he, Yami, Ryou and Tristan came running down from the long stairs of Kaiba Manor.

"Is-is he alright?" Ryou asked as Tristan took Jou into his arms. "K-Kaiba, y-you're bleeding!" Ryou exclaimed as Seto looked at his wound blankly.

"So I am..."

"Let's get that patched up!" Ryou said as Tristan and the others followed from behind.

~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~

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Day 006

[12:03 a.m.]

"You should get some sleep, Kaiba..." Tea said as Kaiba Manor's private doctor took the bullet from Seto's open wound and patched it immediately. Seto nodded softly in agreement as he looked at the doctor. "How's Jou?" He asked emotionlessly.

"The others are not yet done. But so far, he's doing good." The doctor said shortly, "He will sleeping to the room next to yours, Master Seto. Is that okay?" Seto nodded and continued to stare blankly at his palms. "What happened out there, Kaiba?" Ryou started as he and Tea looked anxiously at the CEO, "What happened to Earl?"

Seto tried to bite back his tears as he looked at the other direction; "H-He shot himself at the head."

"Oh God!" Tea instantly cupped her mouth as she looked away.

"I had misunderstood him..." Seto said, burying his head in his left hand as he leaned it on the kitchen table. "I had misunderstood him from the very beginning!"

Tea and Ryou waited as they listened to the CEO.

"His family was killed. He seek out revenge to the person who killed his family... and he did. He killed the person known as Wickstone." Seto paused, "He wanted to make my life a living hell as well... for firing him. I told him that Wickstone wasn't a man to be trusted and that he had been tricked him from the very start... and I knew then that he accepted his mistakes."

"Jou and I tried talking him into starting all over again... but he didn't listen. He killed himself because he wasn't able to forgive himself... of what he had done to Jou..." Seto whispered, obviously shocked of what had just happened.

"Th-this is all my fault..."

~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~

****

[01:29 a.m.]

Seto crept in inside his little brother's room as he tried to hide his bandaged arm behind his coat. Slowly, he sat down beside the sleeping figure as he brushed a few strands of hair away from his brother's eyes.

"B-Big Brother?" Mokuba groaned as he tried to open his eyes fully.

"Hey. I'm back." Seto smiled as he looked at his sick brother. "Tea and Ryou told me you weren't feeling any better. D'you want something?"

"No...he's already here." Mokuba smiled as he sat up to give his brother a hug, when he noticed Seto's bandaged arm. "Wh-what happened?"

"Long story... I got hit by a gunshot. Everything's fine now... and Jou's back." Seto tried to smile, but sadness had overcome his senses. "What's wrong?" Mokuba asked with pure concern, hugging his _oniisan_ carefully not to hit his injury.

"Nothing... nothing at all..." Seto lied.

~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~

****

[10:46 a.m.]

"Jou... you have to eat." Seto said nervously as Jou pushed the bowl of soup aside. "I'm not hungry..." Jou whispered sadly, earning all eyes of his friends on him. "Jou, you have to eat something. You're nothing but skin and bones now!" Tea said worriedly, getting the soup of bowl from Seto's hands and feeding Jou herself.

"_I said I'm not hungry, **okay?** Why don't you understand?_" Jou yelled as he looked away, feeling himself about to sob again. He curled himself into a ball and buried his face on his knees as he felt sobbing anytime soon.

"I'll take care of him..." Seto said as he asked everybody to leave them alone, "Why don't you guys rest? You have your own rooms, right?" And with that, he closed the door behind him. As soon as the door closed, the blonde had started sobbing once again, earning him a glare from the CEO.

"When are you going to stop it?" Seto yelled as he walked over to his puppy and grabbed him by the wrist. "There's nothing we can do now, Jou! Earl. Is. **Dead**. There's absolutely **nothing** we can do about it!"

"That's right... nothing..." Jou looked up to the man he loved. "I wasn't able to do **anything** at all!" Jou gritted his teeth as he felt tears running down. "**Nothing! _Nothing!_** It's all my-"

SLAP!

Jou touched his swollen cheek as he looked up to Seto. "None of it was your fault. You didn't have **anything** to do with this matter and you were just brought along by this..." Seto said as he sat beside the trembling teen, "...I'm sorry, Jou. I'm sorry you had to experience such a heartbreaking ordeal."

Jou continued trembling as he reached to his neck where Earl gave him the countless hickeys. "H-he took it away... H-he took... m-my... vir-... H-he's right... Wh-why am... I n-not mad?"

"Because you knew he loved you... he fell in love with you... like how **I** fell in love with you..." Seto said softly as he held Jou by the neck and pulling him closer into a kiss. Jou felt smiling... but how could he? After all what he have been through...

"I love you Seto..." He said as he closed his eyes and buried his head on the CEO's left shoulder, wrapping his arms around the neck of the person he loved.

"And I love you... Jou."

**__**

End... NOT!

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Epilogue will be next.ü


	7. Week007: It All Comes Down To This

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Title: It all comes down to this…

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Summary: An ex-worker of KaibaCorp rages revenge upon Seto Kaiba… but in order to get to the CEO, he needs bait. And Jounouchi Katsuya is the best victim in his list. [SXJ] [Rated for violence, potty words, torture, blood & sexual harassment]

****

Genre(s): Drama/Angst/Romance/Suspense

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Rating: R – Not suitable for children under 18. But if some teens can handle it… it's not my fault! XD;;

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By: Klyukaizer

~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~

Earl's name is read as (ur-u-lo) when you apply Japanese accent, especially when Jou adds a "_-san_" suffix on Earl's name. You already how to pronounce it in American accent ü

~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~

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Week 007 _(6 weeks later... after the incident)_: It All Comes Down to This...

~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~

"Things are going really well, Earl-_san_... Wickstone's company was brought down all thanks to Seto." Jou smiled, "All the assets and fortune goes to your relatives in Italy and America. Isn't that great?" Jou giggled as he placed a hand on a tombstone.

ERIC LAW

DIED AT THE AGE OF 22.

A GOOD BROTHER AND A GOOD FRIEND.

WE WILL ALL MISS YOU!

The letters were engraved in gold upon a black tombstone. Beside Earl's tombstone was Earl's parents' and Emma's tombstones as well. "You guys are finally together again!" Jou smiled as he stood up to look at all 4 tombstones.

He slowly knelt down as he placed the bouquet of flowers on Earl's grave. "I'm sorry this had to happen, Earl-_san_." Jou apologized, "I never hated you... not even a percent." He whispered to Earl.

"Jou???" Jou's head looked to where the voice called him from below the hill. "_Ikuyou_! We're going to be late!" Seto called.

"Coming, _koi_!" Jou called as he looked back to Earl, "Yes, we're together! I'm living with him from now on too! Don't ask." Jou giggled, standing up and putting both of his hands on his pockets.

"Goodbye, my friend..." He gave a small wave. "...'till next time!" And with that, he ran to where his boyfriend is.

"So... what're you going to do about it?" A certain redhead said as he placed his hands inside his khaki pants the moment the blonde left.

"Wish them both luck..." The other answered.

The redhead sighed as he looked at the 4 Law Tombstones up ahead. "They've done a lot for you, don't you think?" The redhead smiled.

"_Aa_." The other nodded.

"Earl... don't you have any regrets?"

"No, Shuu. I don't." Earl smiled as his ghostly figured looked below to the 2 lovers hugging at the bottom of the hill. "No regrets at all..."

"Hn." Shuu chuckled as he started walking away, but Earl appeared in front of him before the redhead could go any further. "I should've followed your advice." Earl smiled sadly, looking at the redhead.

"So, you **do** have regrets!" Shuu laughed with a raise of an eyebrow. "Hey! That's why ghosts have unfinished business!" Earl fought back as he smirked.

"Yeah? And what would your **'unfinished business'** be?"

"This." Without a second thought, Earl Law's pale white figure leaned forward to the redhead and kissed him squarely on the lips. The moment he pulled away, the raven-haired soul smiled and received a smile back from Shuu.

"You never knew, didn't you?" Earl smiled.

"Never..." Shuu sighed sadly. "Not even a single bit... while you..." he paused, "...you knew very much that I love you."

"_Loved_, Shuu. Past Tense. I'm already gone." Earl smiled sadly.

"No. _Love_. Present Tense." Shuu said, lifting his hand to where Earl's cheek is. But as ghosts are, your hand always slips away from the figure. "I still do, Earl..."

Earl closed his eyes as Shuu's hand caressed his face, even though they just slip away. Earl gave his best friend one last smile without opening his eyes as he felt himself fade away. "Goodbye, Shuu... my _koi._"

"Goodbye." Shuu bid with tears in his eyes, "I love you, my best friend..."

Earl smiled, closing his eyes and finally fading away, "I love you too, my best friend..."

The redhead slowly wiped the tears away from his face and looked at his best friend's (and lover) grave one last time, before turning back to leave.

"May you rest in peace..."

**__**

End.


End file.
